Method and apparatus for providing interface

ABSTRACT

An electronic device and method of operating the electronic device are provided. The electronic device includes a housing, a first connector configured to be exposed to outside of the housing and include a first number of pins, a second connector configured to be exposed to the outside of the housing and include a second number of pins, and a circuit configured to provide an electrical connection between the first number of pins and the second number of pins, wherein the first number is different from the second number, and wherein, when the first connector is connected with a first external electronic device and the second connector is connected with a second external electronic device, the circuit is configured to receive analog identification (ID) information through at least one pin among the first number of pins, and generate digital ID information at least partially based on the analog ID information so as to provide the digital ID information to at least one of the second number of pins.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) of a Koreanpatent application filed on Jun. 10, 2015 in the Korean IntellectualProperty Office and assigned Serial number 10-2015-0082043, the entiredisclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a method and apparatus for providingan interface in order to provide compatibility between a legacy systemand an electronic device.

BACKGROUND

With the recent development of digital technologies, various types ofelectronic devices such as a mobile communication terminal, a smartphone, a tablet personal computer (PC), a personal digital assistant(PDA), an electronic note, a notebook, a wearable device, and atelevision (TV) are widely used. The electronic devices as describedabove provide various interfaces for data transmission, and support datacommunication (for example, transmission or reception) betweenelectronic devices in a wired scheme or a wireless scheme correspondingto interfaces established between the electronic devices. For example,the electronic device may provide an interface through which data can beexchanged in a wireless scheme based on short-rage communication such asBluetooth, or near field communication (NFC) and an interface throughwhich data can be exchanged in a wired scheme based on a cable such as auniversal serial bus (USB).

The interface of the wireless scheme has an advantage of not requiring aphysical cable connection, but is not universal compared to the wiredscheme since the wireless scheme has a limitation in a data transmissionrate and there are still electronic devices which do not support thewireless communication. Therefore, in the electronic device, a schemefor physically connecting to and transferring data to other electronicdevices based on the wired interface scheme (for example, a USBinterface) has been most widely used.

For the case of a USB interface, USB 3.1 type-C standard interface(hereinafter, USB Type-C interface) has recently been proposed andcommercialized. The USB Type-C interface has a symmetrical structure,and can be connected regardless of the directivity, when connecting USBinterfaces (for example, USB connectors) of an electronic device througha USB cable. For example, since connectors at both ends of the USB cablehave the same shape (form) and the connector does not distinguishbetween top and bottom, the immediate connection is possible without theneed to match pin directivity of the connector.

The above information is presented as background information only toassist with an understanding of the present disclosure. No determinationhas been made, and no assertion is made, as to whether any of the abovemight be applicable as prior art with regard to the present disclosure.

SUMMARY

The direct connection is not possible between an electronic deviceemployed with a universal serial bus (USB) interface (for example, alegacy system (for example, USB 2.0 accessories such as widely usedon-the-go (OTG), data cable, wall charger, etc.) in which a USB 2.0standard pin-out interface such as Micro A, B, AB, etc. is employed) andan electronic device in which a USB Type-C interface is employed due tothe difference in the pin configuration, shape (form), etc. of the USBinterface according to the related art. Currently, a gender has beenused for the connection between the USB Type-C interface (for example, ahigh level interface standard) and the USB 2.0 interface (for example, alow level interface standard). However, according to the USB Type-Cinterface, it is defined that all data connections and controls are tobe performed by transmitting and receiving a digital signal to and froma CC1 pin (terminal) and CC2 pin. Therefore, even when the gender isused, the USB identification (ID), which is a form of an analog signalof a device (for example, a legacy system) supporting the USB 2.0interface, may not be recognized, according to the related art.

Aspects of the present disclosure are to address at least theabove-mentioned problems and/or disadvantages and to provide at leastthe advantages described below. Accordingly, an aspect of the presentdisclosure is to provide a method and apparatus for providingcompatibility between a device having a high level interface standardand a device having a low level interface standard.

Another aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a method andapparatus for ensuring the compatibility between an electronic device towhich a USB Type-C is applied and a legacy system supporting the USB 2.0interface which is currently commonly used in various ways.

Another aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a method andapparatus for supporting data communication and various functionsthrough a conversion circuit capable of recognizing the USB ID, whenconnecting a legacy system to an electronic device to which an USBType-C interface is applied.

Another aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a method andapparatus for enabling an electronic device to be compatible with thelegacy systems without changing the manufacturing process equipmentaccording to the related art, when applying a USB Type-C, byintegrating, through a virtual bus (VBUS) terminal, the charging and thesystem power path for the process-use system power to maintain allfeatures of a standard pin-out and power delivery (PD).

In accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure, an electronicdevice is provided. The electronic device includes a housing, a firstconnector configured to be exposed to outside of the housing and includea first number of pins, a second connector configured to be exposed tothe outside of the housing and include a second number of pins, and acircuit configured to provide an electrical connection between the firstnumber of pins and the second number of pins, wherein the first numberis different from the second number, and wherein, when the firstconnector is connected with a first external electronic device and thesecond connector is connected with a second external electronic device,the circuit is further configured to receive analog ID informationthrough at least one pin among the first number of pins, and generatedigital ID information at least partially based on the analog IDinformation so as to provide the digital ID information to at least oneof the second number of pins.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, anelectronic device is provided. The electronic device includes a housing;a first connector configured to be exposed to the outside of the housingand include a first number of pins; a second connector configured to beexposed to the outside of the housing and include a second number ofpins; and a circuit configured to provide an electrical connectionbetween the first number of pins and the second number of pins, whereinthe first number is different from the second number, and when the firstconnector is connected with a first external electronic device and thesecond connector is connected with a second external electronic device,the circuit is configured to: acquire, from a first external device, atleast one among analog ID information, data information, or powerinformation associated with the external device for the electronicdevice; convert the analog ID information into digital ID information;and provide the data information or the power information through thefirst path and provide the digital ID information through the secondpath.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, anelectronic device is provided. The electronic device includes aconnector configured to connect the electronic device with an externaldevice, an electrical path configured to be electrically connected tothe connector, a processor configured to be electrically connected tothe connector and the electrical path, and a memory configured to beelectrically connected to the processor, wherein the memory isconfigured to store instructions to be executed by the processor, theinstructions comprising transmitting analog ID information receivedthrough at least one pin of the connector through the electrical path,generating digital ID information on the basis of the transmitted analogID information, and determining information to be transmitted to theexternal device on the basis of the generated digital ID information.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, anelectronic device is provided. The electronic device includes a housing;a first connector configured to be exposed to the outside of the housingand include a first number of pins; a second number of electrical pathsconfigured to be included inside the housing; the processor configuredto be electrically connected to at least some of the electrical paths;and a circuit configured to provide an electrical connection between thefirst number of pins and the second number of electrical paths, whereinthe first number is different from the second number, and when the firstconnector is connected with a first external electronic device, thecircuit is configured to: receive analog ID information through at leastone pin among the first number of pins, and generate digital IDinformation at least partially based on the analog ID information so asto provide the digital ID information to at least one of the secondnumber of electrical paths.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, a methodfor operating an electronic device including a first connector andsecond connector is provided. The method includes detecting theconnection of external electronic devices through the first connectorand the second connector, receiving analog ID information through atleast one of the first number of pins of the first connector, generatingdigital ID information at least partially based on the analog IDinformation, and providing the generated digital ID information to atleast one of the second number of pins of the second connector, whereinthe first number is different from the second number.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, a methodfor operating an electronic device having a connector is provided. Themethod includes connecting to an external device through the connector,receiving analog ID information associated with the external devicethrough at least one pin of the connector, transmitting the received IDinformation through the electrical path electrically connected to theconnector, generating digital ID information based on the transmittedanalog ID information, and determining information to be transmitted tothe external device based on the generated digital ID information.

In order to solve the technical problem, various embodiments of thepresent disclosure may include a computer-readable recording mediumhaving a program recorded therein to perform the method by a processor.

Other aspects, advantages, and salient features of the disclosure willbecome apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detaileddescription, which, taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings,discloses various embodiments of the present disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of certainembodiments of the present disclosure will be more apparent from thefollowing description taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a network environment including an electronic deviceaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an electronic device according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a program module according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a configuration ofan electronic device according to various embodiments of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 5 illustrates a universal serial bus (USB) interface supported byan electronic device and an operation thereof according to an embodimentof the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a gender according tovarious embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a system configuration for describingoperations for providing an interface between devices according tovarious embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIGS. 8 and 9 are diagrams illustrating an operation of an interfacedevice according to various embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIGS. 10 to 12 are diagrams illustrating an operation of an electronicdevice according to various embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIGS. 13 to 17 are diagrams illustrating a system configuration fordescribing operations for providing an interface between devicesaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure; and

FIGS. 18 to 20 are diagrams illustrating a system configuration fordescribing operations for providing an interface between devicesaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

Throughout the drawings, like reference numerals will be understood torefer to like parts, components, and structures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following description with reference to the accompanying drawings isprovided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of variousembodiments of the present disclosure as defined by the claims and theirequivalents. It includes various specific details to assist in thatunderstanding but these are to be regarded as merely exemplary.Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize thatvarious changes and modifications of the various embodiments describedherein can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of thepresent disclosure. In addition, descriptions of well-known functionsand constructions may be omitted for clarity and conciseness.

The terms and words used in the following description and claims are notlimited to the bibliographical meanings, but, are merely used by theinventor to enable a clear and consistent understanding of the presentdisclosure. Accordingly, it should be apparent to those skilled in theart that the following description of various embodiments of the presentdisclosure is provided for illustration purpose only and not for thepurpose of limiting the present disclosure as defined by the appendedclaims and their equivalents.

It is to be understood that the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the”include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.Thus, for example, reference to “a component surface” includes referenceto one or more of such surfaces.

As used herein, the expression “have”, “may have”, “include”, or “mayinclude” refers to the existence of a corresponding feature (e.g.,numeral, function, operation, or constituent element such as component),and does not exclude one or more additional features.

In the present disclosure, the expression “A or B”, “at least one of Aor/and B”, or “one or more of A or/and B” may include all possiblecombinations of the items listed. For example, the expression “A or B”,“at least one of A and B”, or “at least one of A or B” refers to all of(1) including at least one A, (2) including at least one B, or (3)including all of at least one A and at least one B.

The expression “a first”, “a second”, “the first”, or “the second” usedin various embodiments of the present disclosure may modify variouscomponents regardless of the order and/or the importance but does notlimit the corresponding components. For example, a first user device anda second user device indicate different user devices although both ofthem are user devices. For example, a first element may be termed asecond element, and similarly, a second element may be termed a firstelement without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

It should be understood that when an element (e.g., first element) isreferred to as being (operatively or communicatively) “connected,” or“coupled,” to another element (e.g., second element), it may be directlyconnected or coupled directly to the other element or any other element(e.g., third element) may be interposer between them. In contrast, itmay be understood that when an element (e.g., first element) is referredto as being “directly connected,” or “directly coupled” to anotherelement (second element), there are no element (e.g., third element)interposed between them.

The expression “configured to” used in the present disclosure may beexchanged with, for example, “suitable for”, “having the capacity to”,“designed to”, “adapted to”, “made to”, or “capable of” according to thesituation. The term “configured to” may not necessarily imply“specifically designed to” in hardware. Alternatively, in somesituations, the expression “device configured to” may mean that thedevice, together with other devices or components, “is able to”. Forexample, the phrase “processor adapted (or configured) to perform A, B,and C” may mean a dedicated processor (e.g. embedded processor) only forperforming the corresponding operations or a generic-purpose processor(e.g., central processing unit (CPU) or application processor (AP)) thatcan perform the corresponding operations by executing one or moresoftware programs stored in a memory device.

Unless defined otherwise, all terms used herein, including technical andscientific terms, have the same meaning as those commonly understood bya person skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains.Such terms as those defined in a generally used dictionary may beinterpreted to have the meanings equal to the contextual meanings in therelevant field of art, and are not to be interpreted to have ideal orexcessively formal meanings unless clearly defined in the presentdisclosure. in some cases, even the term defined in the presentdisclosure should not be interpreted to exclude embodiments of thepresent disclosure.

An electronic device according to various embodiments of the presentdisclosure may include at least one of for example, a smart phone, atablet personal computer (PC), a mobile phone, a video phone, anelectronic book reader (e-book reader), a desktop PC, a laptop PC, anetbook computer, a workstation, a server, a personal digital assistant(PDA), a portable multimedia player (PMP), a Moving Picture ExpertsGroup phase 1 or phase 2 (MPEG-1 or MPEG-2) audio layer-III (MP3)player, a mobile medical device, a camera, and a wearable device.According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the wearabledevice may include at least one of an accessory type (e.g., a watch, aring, a bracelet, an anklet, a necklace, a glasses, a contact lens, or ahead-mounted device (HMD)), a fabric or clothing integrated type (e.g.,an electronic clothing), a body-mounted type (e.g., a skin pad, ortattoo), and a bio-implantable type (e.g., an implantable circuit).

According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, the electronicdevice may be a home appliance. The home appliance may include at leastone of, for example, a television (TV), a digital versatile disc (DVD)player, an audio, a refrigerator, an air conditioner, a vacuum cleaner,an oven, a microwave oven, a washing machine, an air cleaner, a set-topbox, a home automation control panel, a security control panel, a TV box(e.g., Samsung HomeSync™, Apple TV™, or Google TV™), a game console(e.g., Xbox™ and PlayStation™), an electronic dictionary, an electronickey, a camcorder, and an electronic photo frame.

According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, theelectronic device may include at least one of various medical devices(e.g., various portable medical measuring devices (a blood glucosemonitoring device, a heart rate monitoring device, a blood pressuremeasuring device, a body temperature measuring device, etc.), a magneticresonance angiography (MRA), a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), acomputed tomography (CT) machine, and an ultrasonic machine), anavigation device, a global positioning system (GPS) receiver, an eventdata recorder (EDR), a flight data recorder (FDR), a vehicleinfotainment device, an electronic device for a ship (e.g., a navigationdevice for a ship, and a gyro-compass), avionics, security devices, anautomotive head unit, a robot for home or industry, an automatic tellermachine (ATM) in banks, point of sales (POS) in a shop, or internet ofthings device (e.g., a light bulb, various sensors, electric or gasmeter, a sprinkler device, a fire alarm, a thermostat, a streetlamp, atoaster, a sporting goods, a hot water tank, a heater, a boiler, etc.).

According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, the electronicdevice may include at least one of a part of furniture or abuilding/structure, an electronic board, an electronic signaturereceiving device, a projector, and various kinds of measuringinstruments (e.g., a water meter, an electric meter, a gas meter, and aradio wave meter). The electronic device according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure may be a combination of one ormore of the aforementioned various devices. The electronic deviceaccording to some embodiments of the present disclosure may be aflexible device. Further, the electronic device according to anembodiment of the present disclosure is not limited to theaforementioned devices, and may include a new electronic deviceaccording to the development of technology.

Hereinafter, an electronic device according to various embodiments willbe described with reference to the accompanying drawings. As usedherein, the term “user” may indicate a person who uses an electronicdevice or a device (e.g., an artificial intelligence electronic device)that uses an electronic device.

FIG. 1 illustrates a network environment including an electronic deviceaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

An electronic device 101 within a network environment 100, according tovarious embodiments of the present disclosure, will be described withreference to FIG. 1. The electronic device 101 may include a bus 110, aprocessor 120, a memory 130, an input/output interface 150, a display160, and a communication interface 170. According to an embodiment ofthe present disclosure, the electronic device 101 may omit at least oneof the above components or may further include other components.

The bus 110 may include, for example, a circuit which interconnects thecomponents comprising the bus 110, the processor 120, the memory 130,the input/output interface 150, the display 160, and the communicationinterface 170 and delivers a communication (e.g., a control messageand/or data) between the components.

The processor 120 may include one or more of a CPU, an AP, and acommunication processor (CP). The processor 120 may carry out, forexample, calculation or data processing relating to control and/orcommunication of at least one other component of the electronic device101.

The memory 130 may include a volatile memory and/or a non-volatilememory. The memory 130 may store, for example, commands or data relevantto at least one other component of the electronic device 101. Accordingto an embodiment of the present disclosure, the memory 130 may storesoftware and/or a program 140. The program 140 may include, for example,a kernel 141, middleware 143, an application programming interface (API)145, and/or application programs (or “applications”) 147. At least someof the kernel 141, the middleware 143, and the API 145 may be referredto as an operating system (OS).

The kernel 141 may control or manage system resources e.g., the bus 110,the processor 120, or the memory 130) used for performing an operationor function implemented in the other programs (e.g., the middleware 143,the API 145, or the application programs 147). Furthermore, the kernel141 may provide an interface through which the middleware 143, the API145, or the application programs 147 may access the individualcomponents of the electronic device 101 to control or manage the systemresources.

The middleware 143, for example, may serve as an intermediary forallowing the API 145 or the application programs 147 to communicate withthe kernel 141 to exchange data.

Also, the middleware 143 may process one or more task requests receivedfrom the application programs 147 according to priorities thereof. Forexample, the middleware 143 may assign priorities for using the systemresources (e.g., the bus 110, the processor 120, the memory 130, or thelike) of the electronic device 101, to at least one of the applicationprograms 147. For example, the middleware 143 may perform scheduling orloading balancing on the one or more task requests by processing the oneor more task requests according to the priorities assigned thereto.

The API 145 is an interface through which the application programs 147control functions provided from the kernel 141 or the middleware 143,and may include, for example, at least one interface or function (e.g.,instruction) for file control, window control, image processing,character control, and the like.

The input/output interface 150, for example, may function as aninterface that may transfer commands or data input from a user oranother external device to the other element(s) of the electronic device101. Furthermore, the input/output interface 150 may output the commandsor data received from the other element(s) of the electronic device 101to the user or another external device.

Examples of the display 160 may include a liquid crystal display (LCD),a light-emitting diode (LED) display, an organic LED (OLED) display, amicroelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) display, and an electronic paperdisplay. The display 160 may display, for example, various types ofcontents (e.g., text, images, videos, icons, or symbols) to users. Thedisplay 160 may include a touch screen, and may receive, for example, atouch, gesture, proximity, or hovering input using an electronic pen ora user's body part.

The communication interface 170 may establish communication, forexample, between the electronic device 101 and an external device (e.g.,a first external electronic device 102, a second external electronicdevice 104, or a server 106). For example, the communication interface170 may be connected to a network 162 through wireless or wiredcommunication, and may communicate with an external device (e.g., thesecond external electronic device 104 or the server 106). The wirelesscommunication may use at least one of, for example, long term evolution(LIE), LTE-advanced (LTE-A), code division multiple access (CDMA),wideband CDMA (WCDMA), universal mobile telecommunications system(UMTS), wireless broadband (WiBro), and global system for mobilecommunications (GSM), as a cellular communication protocol. In addition,the wireless communication may include, for example, short rangecommunication 164. The short-range communication 164 may include atleast one of for example, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, near field communication(NFC), and global navigation satellite system (GNSS). GNSS may include,for example, at least one of GPS, global navigation satellite system(GLONASS), Beidou navigation satellite system (Beidou) or Galileo, andthe European global satellite-based navigation system, based on alocation, a bandwidth, or the like. Hereinafter, in the presentdisclosure, the “GPS” may be interchangeably used with the “GNSS”. Thewired communication may include, for example, at least one of auniversal serial bus (USB), a high definition multimedia interface(HDMI), recommended standard 232 (RS-232), and a plain old telephoneservice (POTS). The network 162 may include at least one of atelecommunication network such as a computer network (e.g., a local areanetwork (LAN) or a wireless area network (WAN)), the Internet, and atelephone network.

Each of the first and second external electronic devices 102 and 104 maybe of a type identical to or different from that of the electronicdevice 101. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theserver 106 may include a group of one or more servers.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, all or someof the operations performed in the electronic device 101 may be executedin another electronic device or a plurality of electronic devices (e.g.,the electronic devices 102 and 104 or the server 106). According to anembodiment of the present disclosure, when the electronic device 101 hasto perform some functions or services automatically or in response to arequest, the electronic device 101 may request another device (e.g., theelectronic device 102 or 104 or the server 106) to execute at least somefunctions relating thereto instead of or in addition to autonomouslyperforming the functions or services. Another electronic device (e.g.,the electronic device 102 or 104, or the server 106) may execute therequested functions or the additional functions, and may deliver aresult of the execution to the electronic device 101. The electronicdevice 101 may process the received result as it is or additionally, andmay provide the requested functions or services. To this end, forexample, cloud computing, distributed computing, or client-servercomputing technologies may be used.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an electronic device according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure.

The electronic device 201 may include, for example, all or a part of theelectronic device 101 shown in FIG. 1. The electronic device 201 mayinclude one or more processors 210 (e.g., AP), a communication module220, a subscriber identification module (SIM) 224, a memory 230, asensor module 240, an input device 250, a display 260, an interface 270,an audio module 280, a camera module 291, a power management module 295,a battery 296, an indicator 297, and a motor 298.

The processor 210 may control a plurality of hardware or softwarecomponents connected to the processor 210 by driving an operating systemor an application program, and perform processing of various pieces ofdata and calculations. The processor 210 may be embodied as, forexample, a system on chip (SoC). According to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure, the processor 210 may further include a graphicsprocessing unit (GPU) and/or an image signal processor (ISP). Theprocessor 210 may include at least some (for example, a cellular module221) of the components illustrated in FIG. 2. The processor 210 mayload, into a volatile memory, commands or data received from at leastone (e.g., a non-volatile memory) of the other components and mayprocess the loaded commands or data, and may store various data in anon-volatile memory.

The communication module 220 may have a configuration equal or similarto that of the communication interface 170 of FIG. 1. The communicationmodule 220 may include, for example, a cellular module 221, a Wi-Fimodule 223, a BT module 225, a GNSS module 227 (e.g., a GPS module 227,a GLONASS module, a Beidou module, or a Galileo module), an NFC module228, and a radio frequency (RF) module 229.

The cellular module 221, for example, may provide a voice call, a videocall, a text message service, or an Internet service through acommunication network. According to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the cellular module 221 may distinguish and authenticate theelectronic device 201 in a communication network using the SIM 224 (forexample, the SIM card). According to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the cellular module 221 may perform at least some of thefunctions that the processor 210 may provide. According to an embodimentof the present disclosure, the cellular module 221 may include a CP.

For example, each of the Wi-Fi module 223, the BT module 225, the GNSSmodule 227, and the NFC module 228 may include a processor forprocessing data transmitted/received through a corresponding module.According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, at least some(e.g., two or more) of the cellular module 221, the Wi-Fi module 223,the BT module 225, the GNSS module 227, and the NFC module 228 may beincluded in one integrated chip (IC) or IC package.

The RF module 229, for example, may transmit/receive a communicationsignal (e.g., an RF signal). The RF module 229 may include, for example,a transceiver, a power amplifier module (PAM), a frequency filter, a lownoise amplifier (LNA), and an antenna. According to another embodimentof the present disclosure, at least one of the cellular module 221, themodule 223, the BT module 225, the GNSS module 227, and the NEC module228 may transmit/receive an RF signal through a separate RF module.

The SIM 224 may include, for example, a card including a SIM and/or anembedded SIM, and may contain unique identification (ID) information(e.g., an integrated circuit card identifier (ICCID)) or subscriberinformation (e.g., an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI).

The memory 230 (e.g., the memory 130) may include, for example, anembedded memory 232 or an external memory 234. The embedded memory 232may include at least one of a volatile memory (e.g., a dynamic randomaccess memory (DRAM), a static RAM (SRAM), a synchronous dynamic RAM(SDRAM), and the like) and a non-volatile memory (e.g., a one timeprogrammable read only memory (OTPROM), a programmable ROM (PROM), anerasable and programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable andprogrammable ROM (EEPROM), a mask ROM, a flash ROM, a flash memory(e.g., a NAND flash memory or a NOR flash memory), a hard disc drive, asolid state drive (SSD), and the like).

The external memory 234 may further include a flash drive, for example,a compact flash (CF), a secure digital (SD), a micro-SD, a mini-SD, aneXtreme digital (xD), a multimedia card (MMC), a memory stick, or thelike. The external memory 234 may be functionally and/or physicallyconnected to the electronic device 201 through various interfaces.

The sensor module 240, for example, may measure a physical quantity ordetect an operation state of the electronic device 201, and may convertthe measured or detected information into an electrical signal. Thesensor module 240 may include, for example, at least one of a gesturesensor 240A, a gyro sensor 240B, an atmospheric pressure sensor(barometer) 240C, a magnetic sensor 240D, an acceleration sensor 240E, agrip sensor 240F, a proximity sensor 240G, a color sensor 240H (e.g.,red, green, and blue (RGB) sensor), a biometric sensor (medical sensor)240I, a temperature/humidity sensor 240J, an illuminance sensor 240K,and an ultra violet (UV) sensor 240M. Additionally or alternatively, thesensor module 240 may include, for example, an E-nose sensor, anelectromyography (EMG) sensor, an electroencephalogram (EEG) sensor, anelectrocardiogram (ECG) sensor, an infrared (IR) sensor, an iris scansensor, and/or a finger scan sensor. The sensor module 240 may furtherinclude a control circuit for controlling one or more sensors includedtherein.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the electronicdevice 201 may further include a processor configured to control thesensor module 240, as a part of the processor 210 or separately from theprocessor 210, and may control the sensor module 240 while the processor210 is in a sleep state.

The input device 250 may include, for example, a touch panel 252, a(digital) pen sensor 254, a key 256, or an ultrasonic input device 258.The touch panel 252 may use, for example, at least one of a capacitivetype, a resistive type, an infrared type, and an ultrasonic type. Thetouch panel 252 may further include a control circuit. The touch panel252 may further include a tactile layer, and provide a tactile reactionto the user.

The (digital) pen sensor 254 may include, for example, a recognitionsheet which is a part of the touch panel or is separated from the touchpanel. The key 256 may include, for example, a physical button, anoptical key or a keypad. The ultrasonic input device 258 may detect,through a microphone e.g., microphone 288), ultrasonic waves generatedby an input tool, and identify data corresponding to the detectedultrasonic waves.

The display 260 (e.g., the display 160) may include a panel 262, ahologram device 264, or a projector 266. The panel 262 may include aconfiguration identical or similar to the display 160 illustrated inFIG. 1. The panel 262 may be implemented to be, for example, flexible,transparent, or wearable. The panel 262 may be embodied as a singlemodule with the touch panel 252. The hologram device 264 may show athree dimensional (3D) image in the air by using an interference oflight. The projector 266 may project light onto a screen to display animage. The screen may be located, for example, in the interior of or onthe exterior of the electronic device 201.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the display 260may further include a control circuit for controlling the panel 262, thehologram device 264, or the projector 266.

The interface 270 may include, for example, an HDMI 272, a USB 274, anoptical interface 276, or a D-subminiature (D-sub) 278. The interface270 may be included in, for example, the communication interface 170illustrated in FIG. 1. Additionally or alternatively, the interface 270may include, for example, a mobile high-definition link (MHL) interface,a SD card/MMC interface, or an infrared data association (IrDA) standardinterface.

The audio module 280, for example, may bilaterally convert a sound andan electrical signal. At least some components of the audio module 280may be included in, for example, the input/output interface 150illustrated in FIG. 1. The audio module 280 may process voiceinformation input or output through, for example, a speaker 282, areceiver 284, earphones 286, or the microphone 288.

The camera module 291 is, for example, a device which may photograph astill image and a video. According to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the camera module 291 may include one or more image sensors(e.g., a front sensor or a back sensor), a lens, an ISP or a flash(e.g., LED or xenon lamp).

The power management module 295 may manage, for example, power of theelectronic device 201. According to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the power management module 295 may include a powermanagement integrated circuit (PMIC), a charger integrated circuit (IC),or a battery or fuel gauge. The PMIC may use a wired and/or wirelesscharging method. Examples of the wireless charging method may include,for example, a magnetic resonance method, a magnetic induction method,an electromagnetic wave method, and the like. Additional circuits (e.g.,a coil loop, a resonance circuit, a rectifier, etc.) for wirelesscharging may be further included. The battery gauge may measure, forexample, a residual quantity of the battery 296, and a voltage, acurrent, or a temperature while charging. The battery 296 may include,for example, a rechargeable battery and/or a solar battery.

The indicator 297 may display a particular state (e.g., a booting state,a message state, a charging state, or the like) of the electronic device201 or a part (e.g., the processor 210) of the electronic device 201.The motor 298 may convert an electrical signal into a mechanicalvibration, and may generate a vibration, a haptic effect, or the like.Although not illustrated, the electronic device 201 may include aprocessing device (e.g., a GPU) for supporting a mobile TV. Theprocessing device for supporting a mobile TV may process, for example,media data according to a certain standard such as digital multimediabroadcasting (DMB), digital video broadcasting (DVB), or mediaFLO™.

Each of the above-described component elements of hardware according tothe present disclosure may be configured with one or more components,and the names of the corresponding component elements may vary based onthe type of electronic device. In various embodiments of the presentdisclosure, the electronic device may include at least one of theabove-described elements. Some of the above-described elements may beomitted from the electronic device, or the electronic device may furtherinclude additional elements. Also, some of the hardware componentsaccording to various embodiments may be combined into one entity, whichmay perform functions identical to those of the relevant componentsbefore the combination.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a program module according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the program module310 (e.g., the program 140) may include an OS for controlling resourcesrelated to the electronic device (e.g., the electronic device 101)and/or various applications (e.g., the application programs 147)executed in the operating system. The operating system may be, forexample, Android, iOS, Windows, Symbian, Tizen, Bada, or the like.

The program module 310 may include a kernel 320, middleware 330, an API360, and/or applications 370. At least some of the program module 310may be preloaded on an electronic device, or may be downloaded from anexternal electronic device the electronic device 102 or 104, or theserver 106).

The kernel 320 (e.g., the kernel 141) may include, for example, a systemresource manager 321 and/or a device driver 323. The system resourcemanager 321 may control, allocate, or collect system resources.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the systemresource manager 321 may include a process management unit, a memorymanagement unit, a file system management unit, and the like. The devicedriver 323 may include, for example, a display driver, a camera driver,a Bluetooth driver, a shared memory driver, a USB driver, a keypaddriver, a Wi-Fi driver, an audio driver, or an inter-processcommunication (IPC) driver.

For example, the middleware 330 may provide a function required incommon by the applications 370, or may provide various functions to theapplications 370 through the API 360 so as to enable the applications370 to efficiently use the limited system resources in the electronicdevice.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the middleware 330(e.g., the middleware 143) may include at least one of a run timelibrary 335, an application manager 341, a window manager 342, amultimedia manager 343, a resource manager 344, a power manager 345, adatabase manager 346, a package manager 347, a connectivity manager 348,a notification manager 349, a location manager 350, a graphic manager351, and a security manager 352.

The runtime library 335 may include a library module that a compileruses in order to add a new function through a programming language whilean application 370 is being executed. The runtime library 335 mayperform input/output management, memory management, the functionalityfor an arithmetic function, or the like.

The application manager 341 may manage, for example, a life cycle of atleast one of the applications 370. The window manager 342 may managegraphical user interface (GUI) resources used by a screen. Themultimedia manager 343 may recognize a format required for reproductionof various media files, and may perform encoding or decoding of a mediafile by using a codec suitable for the corresponding format. Theresource manager 344 may manage resources of a source code, a memory,and a storage space of at least one of the applications 370.

The power manager 345 may operate together with, for example, a basicinput/output system (BIOS) or the like to manage a battery or powersource and may provide power information or the like required for theoperations of the electronic device. The database manager 346 maygenerate, search for, and/or change a database to be used by at leastone of the applications 370. The package manager 347 may manageinstallation or an update of an application distributed in a form of apackage file.

For example, the connectivity manager 348 may manage wirelessconnectivity such as Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. The notification manager 349may display or notify of an event such as an arrival message, promise,proximity notification, and the like in such a way that does not disturba user. The location manager 350 may manage location information of anelectronic device. The graphic manager 351 may manage a graphic effectwhich will be provided to a user, or a user interface (UI) related tothe graphic effect. The security manager 352 may provide all securityfunctions required for system security, user authentication, or thelike. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, when theelectronic device (e.g., the electronic device 101) has a telephone callfunction, the middleware 330 may further include a telephony manager formanaging a voice call function or a video call function of theelectronic device.

The middleware 330 may include a middleware module that forms acombination of various functions of the above-described components. Themiddleware 330 may provide a module specialized for each type of OS inorder to provide a differentiated function. Further, the middleware 330may dynamically remove some of the existing components or add newcomponents.

The API 360 (e.g., the API 145) is, for example, a set of APIprogramming functions, and may be provided with a differentconfiguration according to an OS. For example, in the case of Android oriOS, one API set may be provided for each platform. In the case ofTizen, two or more API sets may be provided for each platform.

The applications 370 (e.g., the application programs 147) may include,for example, one or more applications which may provide functions suchas a home 371, a dialer 372, a short message service (SMS)/multimediamessaging service (MMS) 373, an instant message (IM) 374, a browser 375,a camera 376, an alarm 377, contacts 378, a voice dial 379, an email380, a calendar 381, a media player 382, an album 383, a watch (e.g.,clock) 384, health care (e.g., measuring exercise quantity or bloodsugar), or environment information (e.g., providing atmosphericpressure, humidity, or temperature information).

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the applications370 may include an application (hereinafter, referred to as an“information exchange application” for convenience of description) thatsupports exchanging information between the electronic device (e.g., theelectronic device 101) and an external electronic device (e.g., theelectronic device 102 or 104). The information exchange application mayinclude, for example, a notification relay application for transferringspecific information to an external electronic device or a devicemanagement application for managing an external electronic device.

For example, the notification relay application may include a functionof transferring, to the external electronic device (e.g., the electronicdevice 102 or 104), notification information generated from otherapplications of the electronic device 101 (e.g., an SMS/MMS application,an e-mail application, a health management application, or anenvironmental information application). Further, the notification relayapplication may receive notification information from, for example, anexternal electronic device and provide the received notificationinformation to a user.

The device management application may manage (e.g., install, delete, orupdate), for example, at least one function of an external electronicdevice (e.g., the electronic device 102 or 104) communicating with theelectronic device (e.g., a function of turning on/off the externalelectronic device itself (or some components) or a function of adjustingthe brightness (or a resolution) of the display), applications operatingin the external electronic device, and services provided by the externalelectronic device (e.g., a call service or a message service).

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the applications370 may include applications (e.g., a health care application of amobile medical appliance or the like) designated according to anexternal electronic device (e.g., attributes of the electronic device102 or 104).

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the applications370 may include an application received from an external electronicdevice (e.g., the server 106, or the electronic device 102 or 104).

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the applications370 may include a preloaded application or a third party applicationthat may be downloaded from a server. The names of the components of theprogram module 310 of the illustrated embodiment of the presentdisclosure may change according to the type of operating system.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, at least apart of the program module 310 may be implemented in software, firmware,hardware, or a combination of two or more thereof. At least some of theprogram module 310 may be implemented (e.g., executed) by, for example,the processor (e.g., the processor 1410). At least some of the programmodule 310 may include, for example, a module, a program, a routine, aset of instructions, and/or a process for performing one or morefunctions.

The term “module” as used herein may, for example, mean a unit includingone of hardware, software, and firmware or a combination of two or moreof them. The “module” may be interchangeably used with, for example, theterm “unit”, “logic”, “logical block”, “component”, or “circuit”. The“module” may be a minimum unit of an integrated component element or apart thereof. The “module” may be a minimum unit for performing one ormore functions or a part thereof. The “module” may be mechanically orelectronically implemented. For example, the “module” according to thepresent disclosure may include at least one of an application-specificintegrated circuit (ASIC) chip, a field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA),and a programmable-logic device for performing operations which has beenknown or are to be developed hereinafter.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, at leastsome of the devices (for example, modules or functions thereof) or themethod (for example, operations) according to the present disclosure maybe implemented by a command stored in a computer-readable storage mediumin a programming module form. The instruction, when executed by aprocessor (e.g., the processor 120), may cause the one or moreprocessors to execute the function corresponding to the instruction. Thecomputer-readable recoding media may be, for example, the memory 130.

The computer readable recoding medium may include a hard disk, a floppydisk, magnetic media (e.g., a magnetic tape), optical media (e.g., acompact disc ROM (CD-ROM) and a DVD), magneto-optical media (e.g., afloptical disk) hardware device (e.g., a ROM, a RAM, a flash memory),and the like. In addition, the program instructions may include highclass language codes, which can be executed in a computer by using aninterpreter, as well as machine codes made by a compiler. Theaforementioned hardware device may be configured to operate as one ormore software modules in order to perform the operation of the presentdisclosure, and vice versa.

Any of the modules or programming modules according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure may include at least one of theabove described elements, exclude some of the elements, or furtherinclude other additional elements. The operations performed by themodules, programming module, or other elements according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure may be executed in a sequential,parallel, repetitive, or heuristic manner. Further, some operations maybe executed according to another order or may be omitted, or otheroperations may be added.

Various embodiments disclosed herein are provided merely to easilydescribe technical details of the present disclosure and to help theunderstanding of the present disclosure, and are not intended to limitthe scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, it should be construedthat all modifications and changes or modified and changed forms basedon the technical idea of the present disclosure fall within the scope ofthe present disclosure.

Various embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a method,apparatus, and system for maintaining compatibility between electronicdevices supporting interfaces of different standards. In variousembodiments of the present disclosure, an interface may be providedbetween devices supporting a USB 3.1 Type-C interface and a USB 2.0interface, respectively. For example, according to various embodimentsof the present disclosure, the compatibility may be ensured whenconnecting an electronic device having a high level interface standard(for example, USB 3.1 Type-C interface) and a legacy system having a lowlevel interface standard (for example, a USB 2.0 standard pin-outinterface such as Micro A, B, AB, etc.).

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the problemof limiting a scenario applying the legacy system can be solved, whenapplying a USB Type-C to an electronic device, by ensuring thecompatibility of the electronic device and the USB interface-basedlegacy system which is commonly used in various ways according to therelated art. According to various embodiments of the present disclosure,a standard pin-out may be maintained and all features of power delivery(PD) may be maintained by integrating the charging and the system powerpath through a VBUS terminal of a USB Type-C interface. In addition,according to various embodiments of the present disclosure, malfunctionissues can be prevented between an electronic device and a legacysystem, and the compatibility with the legacy system can be made withoutchanging the manufacturing process equipment, according to the relatedart.

According to the various embodiments of the present disclosure, thedevice may include all information and communication devices, multimediadevices, wearable devices, and application devices thereof that use oneor more of various processors, such as an AP, a CP, a GPU, a CPU, andthe like. A legacy system according to various embodiments of thepresent disclosure may include legacy accessories supporting a USB 2.0interface such as a widely used on-the-go (OTG), data cable, wallcharger, PC, etc.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, there will bedescribed a method, apparatus, and system for providing an interfaceaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure. However,since the various embodiments are not restricted or limited by thefollowing description, it should be noted that applications can be madeto the various embodiments based on embodiments that will be describedbelow. Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present disclosure willbe described based on an approach of hardware. However, variousembodiments of the present disclosure include a technology that usesboth hardware and software and thus, the various embodiments of thepresent disclosure may not exclude the perspective of software.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a configuration ofan electronic device according to various embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

Referring to FIG. 4, an electronic device 400 according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure may include a wirelesscommunication unit 410, a user input unit 420, a touch screen 430, anaudio processor 440, a memory 450, an interface unit 460, a cameramodule 470, a controller 480, and a power supply unit 490.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, theelectronic device 400 may include fewer or more component elements whencompared to the component elements of FIG. 4, since the componentelements of FIG. 4 are not essential.

The wireless communication unit 410 may include a configurationidentical or similar to the communication module 220 of FIG. 2. Thewireless communication unit 410 may include one or more modules forenabling wireless communication between the electronic device 400 andother external electronic device (for example, a smartphone). Forexample, the wireless communication unit 410 may be configured toinclude a mobile communication module 411, a wireless local area network(WLAN) module 413, a short-range communication module 415, and alocation calculation module 417, etc. In various embodiments of thepresent disclosure, the wireless communication unit 410 may include amodule (for example, a short-range communication module, atelecommunication module, etc.) for performing communication withneighboring external electronic devices.

The wireless communication unit 410 may include a configurationidentical or similar to the cellular module 221 of FIG. 2. The mobilecommunication module 411 may transmit/receive a wireless signal to/fromat least one of a base station, an external electronic device (forexample, the electronic device 104), and various servers (for example,an integration server, a provider server, a content server, an Internetserver, a cloud server, and the like) over a mobile communicationnetwork. The wireless signal may include a voice signal, data signal, orvarious types of control signals. The mobile communication module 411may transmit various pieces of data required for the operations of theelectronic device 400 to the external device (e.g., the server 106,second external electronic device 104, or the like), in response to auser's request.

The WLAN module 413 may include a configuration identical or similar tothe Wi-Fi module 223 of FIG. 2. The WLAN module 413 may indicate amodule for establishing a wireless Internet access and a wireless LANlink with another electronic device (for example, the electronic device102 or the server 106). The WLAN module 413 may be installed inside oroutside the electronic device 400. Wireless Internet technology mayinclude Wi-Fi, Wibro, world interoperability for microwave access(WiMax), high speed downlink packet access (HSDPA), millimeter wave(mmWave), or the like. The WLAN module 413 may be interlocked withanother external electronic device connected to the electronic device400 through a network (for example, Wi-Fi network), transmit/receivevarious pieces of data of the electronic device 400 to or from theoutside (for example, an external electronic device or a server). TheWLAN module 413 may always maintain an on-state, or may be turned onbased on settings of the electronic device 400 or a user input.

The short-range communication module 415 may be a module for performingshort-range communication. As the short-range communication technology,Bluetooth, Bluetooth low energy (BLE), RFID, IrDA communication, ultrawideband (UWB), ZigBee, or NFC, etc. can be utilized. The short-rangecommunication module 415 may be interlocked with another electronicdevice connected to the electronic device 400 through a network (e.g., ashort-range communication network), transmit or receive various piecesof data of the electronic device 400 to or from the electronic device400. The short-range communication module 415 may always maintain anon-state, or may be turned on based on settings of the electronic device400 or a user input.

The location calculation module 417 may include a configurationidentical or similar to the GNSS module 227 of FIG. 2. The locationcalculation module 417 may be a module for obtaining the location of theelectronic device 400, and may include a GPS module as a representativeexample. The location calculation module 417 may measure the location ofthe electronic device 400 through a triangulation principle.

The user input unit 420 may generate input data for controlling theoperations of the electronic device 400 in response to a user input. Theuser input unit 420 may include at least one input device for detectingvarious user inputs. For example, the user input unit 420 may include akeypad, a dome switch, a physical button, a touch pad (resistivetype/capacitive type), a jog & shuttle, and a sensor e.g., sensor module240).

The user input unit 420 may be implemented in the form of buttonslocated outside the electronic device 400 or some or all of the userinput unit 420 may be implemented in the form of touch panel. The userinput unit 420 may receive a user input for initiating operations anoperation of identifying a device to be connected on the basis of a USBinterface and data communication operation, etc) of the electronicdevice 400 according to various embodiments of the present disclosure,and may generate an input signal based on a user input.

The touch screen 430 may indicate an input/output means thatsimultaneously executes an input function and a display function, andmay include a display 431 (e.g., the display 160 or 260), and a touchsensing unit 433. The touch screen 430 may provide an input/outputinterface between the electronic device 400 and the user, transfer atouch input of the user to the electronic device 400, and serve as amedium that shows an output from the electronic device 400 to the user.The touch screen 430 may show a visual output to the user. The visualoutput may be shown in a form of text, graphics, video, and acombination thereof.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the display431 may display (output) various pieces of information processed in theelectronic device 400. For example, the display 431 may display a UI ora (GUI, graphical UI) related to an operation performed by theelectronic device 400 during charging or an operation of performing datacommunication through USB interface connection. The display 431 may usevarious displays (e.g., the display 160).

The touch sensing unit 433 may be mounted on the display 431, and maydetect a user input that is in contact with or in proximity to thesurface of the touch screen 430. The user input may include a touchevent or a proximity event to be input based on at least one among asingle-touch, a multi-touch, a hovering, or an air gesture. The touchsensing unit 433 may receive a user input for initiating the operationsrelated to the use of the electronic device 400 according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure, or may generate an input signalbased on a user input.

The audio processor 440 may include a configuration identical or similarto the audio module 280 of FIG. 2. The audio processor 440 may transmitan audio signal received from the controller 480 to a speaker (SPK) 441,and may transfer, to the controller 480, an audio signal such as a voiceor the like, which is input from a microphone (MIC) 443. The audioprocessor 440 may convert voice/sound data into audible sound throughthe speaker 441 based on the control of the controller 480 and mayoutput the audible sound, and may convert an audio signal such as avoice or the like which is received from the microphone 443 into adigital signal and may transfer the digital signal to the controller480.

The speaker 441 may output audio data that is received from the wirelesscommunication unit 410 or stored in the memory 450. The speaker 441 mayoutput a sound signal associated with various operations (functions)executed by the electronic device 400.

The microphone 443 may receive an external sound signal and process thesame to be electrical voice data. Various noise reduction algorithms maybe implemented in the microphone 443 to remove noise generated in theprocess of receiving an external sound signal. The microphone 443 may beresponsible for the input of an audio stream such as voice commands(e.g., voice commands for initiating data communication).

The memory 450 (e.g., the memory 130 and 230) may store one or moreprograms that are executed by the controller 480, and may execute afunction for temporarily storing input/output data. The input and outputdata may include files such as, for example, videos, images, andphotographs, etc. The memory 450 may take a role for storing theacquired data, and store the data acquired in real time in a temporarystorage device, and store the data decided to be stored in a long-termstorage device.

The memory 450 may store one or more programs and data associated withperforming functions such as connection of the electronic device 400based on the USB interface, device ID, data communication, or charging,etc. For example, in various embodiments of the present disclosure, thememory 450 may transmit, through an electric path, analog ID informationreceived through at least one pin of a connector, generate digital IDinformation based on the transmitted analog ID information, and storeinstructions for determining information to be transmitted to theexternal device based on the generated digital ID information.

The memory 450 may include one or more application modules (or asoftware module), etc. The application module may include instructionsfor the USB interface connection, device ID, data communication, orcharging. For example, when a legacy system is connected through a USBType-C interface, the application module may transmit and receive adigital signal to and from the configuration channels (CC) pin (forexample, CC1, CC2) of a USB Type-C interface, and process an operation(function) of converting for identifying a device to which the legacysystem is connected.

The interface unit 460 may have a configuration identical or similar tothe interface 270 of FIG. 2. The interface unit 460 may receive data orpower from an external electronic device, and may transfer the same toeach component element included in the electronic device 400. Theinterface unit 460 may enable the data inside the electronic device 400to be transmitted to an external electronic device.

For example, the interface unit 460 may include a port for connecting adevice (a legacy system (e.g., USB 2.0 accessories such as widely usedOTG, data cable, wall charger, etc.) in which a USB 2.0 standard pin-outinterface such as Micro A, B, AB, etc. is employed)) provided with awired/wireless headset port, an external charger port, a wired/wirelessdata port, a memory card port, an ID module; an audio input/output port;video input/output port; an earphone port, etc.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the interface unit460 may include a USB Type-C interface. The interface unit 460 maysupport the connection with another electronic device (for example, alegacy system), support communication paths (for example, a firstcommunication path, a second communication path) according to differentstandards (e.g., a first standard (for example, USB 3.1) or a secondstandard (for example, USB 2.0)), and may support the data communicationbased on at least some of the communication paths. For example theinterface unit 460 may simultaneously support the first datacommunication by the first communication path by the first standardbetween the electronic devices and the second data communication by thesecond communication path according to the second standard. In variousembodiments of the present disclosure, the first standard may be assumedto support higher speed data communication than the second standard.

The camera module 470 (for example, the camera module 291) may indicatea configuration that supports a photographing function of the electronicdevice 400. The camera module 470 may photograph a random objectaccording to a control of the controller 480 and transfer photographeddata (e.g., an image) to the display 431 and the controller 480. Invarious embodiments of the present disclosure, the camera module 470 maybe disposed on a particular location (for example, the middle or top ofthe body of the electronic device 400) at which the electronic device400 may photograph.

The controller 480 may control a general operation of the electronicdevice 400. According to various embodiments of the present disclosure,the controller 480 may control operations associated with transmitting,through an electric path, analog ID information received through atleast one pin of a connector, generating digital ID information based onthe transmitted analog ID information, and determining information to betransmitted to the external device based on the generated digital IDinformation.

The controller 480 may include one or more processors for controllingthe operation of the electronic device 400. In various embodiments ofthe present disclosure, the controller 480 may control operations ofhardware modules such as the interface unit 460, etc. Hereinafter, withreference to the accompanying drawings, will be described controloperations by the controller 480, and interface control operation forconnection between devices and data communication according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, thecontroller 480 may be interlocked with software modules stored in thememory 450, and perform a connection operation between devices and datacommunication operation of the electronic device 400 according tovarious embodiments of the present disclosure.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, thecontroller 480 may be embodied as one or more processors that controlthe operations of the electronic device 400 according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure by executing one or more programsstored in the memory 450.

The power supply unit 490 may receive external power or internal powerbased on the control of the controller 480, and may supply powerrequired for the operation of each element. In various embodiments ofthe present disclosure, the power supply unit 490 may supply or blockpower (on/off) to the display 431, the camera module 470, etc. under acontrol of the controller 480.

Various embodiments described in the present disclosure may beimplemented in a computer or a similar device-readable recording mediumthrough software, hardware or a combination thereof.

FIG. 5 illustrates a USB interface supported by the electronic deviceand an operation thereof according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

Referring to FIG. 5, FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a structure of afunctional pin of a USB Type-C interface used in the embodiment of thepresent disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 5, FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a structure of aninput/output pin-out of the USB interface (for example, USB Type-C). TheUSB interface may be largely divided into a first part 510 and a secondpart 520, and the first part 510 and the second part 520 may have asymmetrical structure. When the USB interface (for example, USBconnector) of the electronic device is connected to a. USB cable orgender, the USB interface may be connected to the USB cable based on thesymmetrical structure regardless of connectivity. For example, sinceconnectors at both ends of the USB cable may have the same shape (form)and the connector does not distinguish between front and back, theimmediate connection is possible without the need to match pindirectivity of the connector. For example, the USB interface may beconnected right-side-up (place the first part 510 up) or, inversely, theUSB interface may be connected upside-down (place the first part 510down). The connection state of the USB interface may be detected throughCC (for example, CC1 (A5 pin) or CC2 (B5 pin)). When a pull-down Rd isdetected at the CC1 (A5 pin) of the USB interface, the first part 510may be in a plugged state, and when a pull-down is detected at CC2 (B5pin) of the USB interface, the second part 520 may be in a pluggedstate.

The USB interface may include, for example, a total of 24 designatedpins (for example, A1 to A12 and B1 to B12), and each of the 24 numberof pins may have an individual role as illustrated in FIG. 5.

The USB interface may support, for example, data communication atdifferent transmission rates. For example, the USB interface may includea first communication path 530 corresponding to a first standard (forexample, USB 3.1) supporting high speed data communication and a secondcommunication path 540 corresponding to a second standard (for example,USB 2.0) supporting low speed data communication. The firstcommunication path 530 of the first standard (for example, USB 3.1) maybe configured to be one pair 531 in the first part 510, and may beconfigured to be one other pair 533 in the second part 520. The secondcommunication path 540 of the second standard (for example, USB 2.0) maybe configured to be one pair 541 in the first part 510, and may beconfigured to be one other pair 543 in the second part 520. That is, thefirst communication path 530 and the second communication path 540 maybe implemented to be symmetrical in the first part 510 and second part520 corresponding to the symmetrical structure of the USB interface.

The electronic devices may, when connected to each other through the USBinterface, divided to operate as a host (for example, downstream facingport (DFP)) and a slave (for example, upstream facing port (UFP), andthe division may be specified through the CC (for example, CC1 or CC2)terminal of the USB interface. For example, for the connection methodusing the USB interface, CC1 and CC2 exist for recognizing the connectortightening direction and digital data communication, and the role of thehost (DFP) and the slave (UFP) may be defined by the pull-up (Rp) orcurrent sourcing and pull-down (Rd). For the USB interface, the side inwhich the pull-down (Rd) exists is defined as the slave (UFP), and thehost (DFP) may supply power through a power supply pin (for example,virtual bus (VBUS), power rail (e.g., VCONN)) according to the needs ofthe slave (UFP).

Further, the electronic devices may operate as a Dual Role Port (DRP) aswell as the host (DFP) and the slave (UFP). The DRP may indicate a mode(function) in which the roles of the host (DFP) and the slave (UFP) canbe adaptively changed. For example, when the DRP is connected as thehost (DFP), the DRP may be changed to the slave (UFP). When the DRP isconnected as the slave (UFP), the DRP may be changed to the host (DFP).Further, when two DRPs are connected together, one DRP may serve as thehost (DFP) and the other DRP may serve as the slave (UFP) in a randommanner. For example, electronic devices such as smart phones or PCs mayserve as both the host (DFP) and the slave (UFP) and, fir this purpose,may perform periodical toggling of the pull-up and pull-down.

A VBUS of the USB interface may indicate a power supply terminal andsupport power corresponding to each USB standard illustrated in Table 1below.

TABLE 1 Mode of Nominal Maximum Operation Voltage Current Notes USB 2.05 V 500 mA Default Current, based on definitions in the basespecifications USB 3.1 5 V 900 mA Legacy charging USB BC 1.2 5 V Up to1.5 A Supports higher power devices USB Type-C 5 V  1.5 A Supportshigher power Current @ 1.5 A devices USB Type-C 5 V  3 A Supports higherpower Current @ 3.0 A devices USB PD Configurable ConfigurableDirectional control and up to 20 V up to 5 A power level management

As shown in Table 1 above, the USB interface according to an embodimentof the present disclosure may support a power capability up to 5 V/3 A.When USB PD is combined with the USB Type-C, the USB interface maysupport a power capability up to 20 V/5 A. A USB PD protocol may betransmitted through a CC line connection.

In general, when the electronic devices are designated as the host (DFP)and the slave (UFP), an electronic device that operates as the host(DFP) may transfer data to an electronic device that operates as theslave (UFP), and as a first operation, it may transfer data through thefirst standard (for example, USB 3.1) transmission terminal (forexample, the first communication path 530) designated in two pairs atthe USB interface. Alternatively, when the electronic devices are notcompatible with the first standard, data may be transmitted through thetransmission port of the second standard (for example, USB 2.0)transmission terminal (for example, the second communication path 540)having one pair of pins.

For example, the USB interface may include data communication pathscorresponding to different standards (for example, the first standardand the second standard) for data transmission as described above.According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the USB interfacemay be divided into the first communication path 530 for datacommunication (for example, super speed plus (SSP), 10 Gbpscommunication) based on the communication speed of a first standard (forexample, USB 3.1), and a second communication path 540 for datacommunication (for example, high speed, 480 Mbps communication) based onthe communication speed of a second standard (for example, USB 2.0).When the electronic device, connected through the USB interface andoperating as the host (DFP), transmits data to the electronic devicethat operates as the slave (UFP), data communication can bepreferentially performed in the first communication path 530 (e.g., apath having a higher data transmission speed is preferentially set) ofthe first standard having a higher priority (for example, thecommunication speed is fast).

On the other hand, for the USB Type-C interface, since it is definedthat all data connections and controls are to be performed bytransmitting and receiving a digital signal to and from the CC1 and CC2as described above, device ID (e.g., the USB ID recognition) of a legacysystem supporting the USB 2.0 interface may not be possible according tothe related art. For example, when connecting the USB 2.0 formataccessory such as a generally-used OTG, data cable, or wall charger toan electronic device to which the USB Type-C is applied, the electronicdevice may not be identified, resulting in a problem of datacommunication failure.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, a method and apparatuswill be described which can ensure the compatibility with the USB 2.0format accessory which is currently generally used in various ways whenUSB 3.1 Type-C is applied.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, proposed arean apparatus (for example, a gender or an electronic device) forenabling the interface compatibility between a legacy system that uses alow level interface standard (for example, USB 2.0) and an electronicdevice that uses a high level interface standard (for example, USB 3.1)and an operation method thereof. Hereinafter, with reference to thedrawings an interface providing method and apparatus for supportingbackward compatibility with legacy micro-USB (five pins) by the USB 3.1type C (24 number of pins) will be described according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a gender according tovarious embodiments of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 6, it schematically shows a structure of a device 600(for example, a gender) for supporting various data communication byinterface connection between a legacy system of a low level interfacestandard and an electronic device of a high level interface standard.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the first externalelectronic device 700 may indicate a legacy system in which a USBinterface (for example, USB 2.0 standard pin-out such as Micro A, B, AB,etc.) is employed according to the related art. For example, the firstexternal electronic device 700 may include USB 2.0 accessories such as agenerally-used OTG, data cable, wall charger, etc. or an electronicdevice such as PC.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, a gender 600 mayinclude a first connector 610 for a low level interface standard (forexample, USB 2.0 interface), a second connector 620 for a high levelinterface standard (for example, the USB 3.1 Type-C interface of FIG.5), and a housing 630 (for example, the body) including the firstconnector 610 and the second connector 620 and various circuits forelectrical connection between the first connector 610 and secondconnector 620.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the first connector610 may be exposed to the outside of the housing 630 and include a firstnumber of pins 615 (for example, X number of pins (e.g., four, five, ornine), X is a natural number). The first connector 610 may have anasymmetrical shape in at least one direction (for example, a micro USBhas an asymmetric shape in only up and down directions as illustrated inFIG. 6. In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the secondconnector 620 may be exposed to the outside of the housing 630 andinclude a second number of pins 625 (for example, Y number of pins(e.g., 24 number of pins), Y is a natural number greater than X). Thesecond connector 620 may have an asymmetrical shape in at least twodirections (for example, horizontal and vertical symmetrical shape) asillustrated in FIG. 6. In various embodiments of the present disclosure,the first number of pins and the second number of pins are differentfrom each other according to the type of the gender 600 to beimplemented (for example, the first number of pins is configured to befewer than the second number of pins) or to be implemented with the samenumber (for example, the first number and second number of pins areconfigured to be 24).

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the gender 600 mayinclude a circuitry (not shown) for providing an electrical connectionbetween the first number of pins 615 of the first connector 610 and thesecond number of the pins 625 of the second connector 620.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, a first connector 610of the gender 600 may be connected to the first external electronicdevice 700 (for example, legacy systems such as USB 2.0 interfaceaccessories) (for example, a connector 750 of the first externalelectronic device 700 and the first connector 610 of the gender 600 maybe joined). In various embodiments of the present disclosure, a secondconnector 620 of the gender 600 may be connected to the second externalelectronic device 400 (for example, the electronic device 400 of FIG. 4)(for example, the second connector 620 of the gender 600 and a connector461 of the second external electronic device 400 may be tightened). Invarious embodiments of the present disclosure, the connection betweenthe gender 600, the first external electronic device 700, and the secondexternal electronic device 400 is not limited to the above. For example,according to an interface standard supported by the gender 600, thefirst external electronic device 700, and the second electronic device400, the second connector 620 of the gender 600 may be connected to thefirst external electronic device 700 (for example, when the firstexternal electronic device 700 supports the USB 3.1 Type-C interface),and the first connector 610 of the gender 600 may be connected to thesecond external electronic device 400 (for example, when the secondexternal electronic device 400 is a legacy system supporting USB 2.0interface).

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, although the firstconnector 610 and second connector 620 of the gender 600 are illustratedin different shapes (for example, a female connector and a maleconnector), the first connector 610 and second connector 620 may beimplemented in the same shape (for example, the female connector/femaleconnector or male connector/male connector) depending on the design ofthe gender 600, and also be implemented in the opposite shape to themale and female connectors illustrated as examples of FIG. 6.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, when the firstexternal electronic device 700 is connected through the first connector610 and the second external electronic device 400 is connected throughthe second connector 620, the gender 600 may acquire (receive) analog IDinformation associated with the first external electronic device 700through at least one of the first number of pins 615 of the firstconnector 610. The gender 600 may generate digital ID information basedon at least some of the received analog ID information and provide thegenerated digital ID information to the at least one of the secondnumber of pins 625. In various embodiments of the present disclosure,the digital ID information can be transmitted to the second externalelectronic device 400 through at least one of the second number of pins625.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, when the firstexternal electronic device 700 is connected through the first connector610 and the second external electronic device 400 is connected throughthe second connector 620, the gender 600 may acquire (receive) at leastone of analog ID information, data information, or power informationassociated with the first external electronic device 700 through atleast one of the first number of pins 615 of the first connector 610.The gender 600 may convert the received analog ID information to digitalID information. The gender 600 may provide the converted digital IDinformation to the second external electronic device 400 through thefirst path of the second connector 620 (for example, an electrical pathincluding at least one of the second number of pins 625). In addition,the gender 600 may provide the received data information or powerinformation to the second external electronic device 400 through thesecond path of the second connector 620 (for example, an electrical pathincluding at least one other pin of the second number of pins 625).

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, when the firstexternal electronic device 700 is connected through the first connector610, and the second external electronic device 400 is connected throughthe second connector 620, the gender 600 may be configured to determinethe type of the first external electronic device 700, and then convertthe analog ID information associated with the first external electronicdevice 700 into the digital ID information. On the other hand, thegender 600 may be configured to convert the analog ID informationassociated with the first external electronic device 700 into thedigital ID information without determining the type of the firstexternal electronic device 700.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the second externalelectronic device 400 may represent the electronic device to which theUSB 3.1 Type-C interface is employed. For example, the second externalelectronic device 400 may have the same configuration as or similarconfiguration to the electronic device of FIG. 4 and, for example,include an electronic device such as a smart phone, and in FIG. 6, theinterface part of the second external electronic device 400 isillustrated.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the second externalelectronic device 400 may include the connector 461 for a high levelinterface standard (for example, USB 3.1 Type-C Interface), apredetermined number of pins 463 (for example, Y number of pins (e.g.,24), and a housing 465 (for example, the body) including a gender 600 bythe connector 461 and the predetermined number of pins 463. In variousembodiments of the present disclosure, on the basis of at least some ofthe predetermined number of the pins 463, one or more electrical paths(for example, a plurality of paths that are separated by a plurality ofpins) can be formed.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the second externalelectronic device 400 can be connected to external devices (for example,a gender 600 or a first external electronic device 700) through theconnector 461. In addition, although not shown in FIG. 6, the secondexternal electronic device 400 may include a processor (for example, thecontroller 480 in FIG. 4) electrically connected with the connector 461and the predetermined number of pins 463, and a memory (for example,reference numeral 450 in FIG. 4) electrically connected with theprocessor. In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the memorymay generate digital ID information based on the analog ID informationof an external device connected through the connector 461, and storeinstructions for determining information to be transmitted to theexternal device based on the generated digital ID information.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, when the externaldevice is connected through the connector 461, the second externalelectronic device 400 may acquire information (for example, an analog IDinformation) of the external device through the predetermined number ofpins 463 electrically connected to the connector 461. The secondexternal electronic device 400 (for example, processors) may transmitthe analog ID information received through at least one pin of theconnector 461 through the electrical path, and generate digital IDinformation on the basis of the transmitted analog ID information. Thesecond external electronic device 400 may determine information to betransmitted to the external device (for example, the gender 600) basedon the generated digital ID information.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the connector 461 maybe exposed to the outside of the housing 465 and include a predeterminednumber of pins 463. In various embodiments of the present disclosure,electrical paths electrically connected to the connector 461 may beincluded in the interior of the housing 465, and at least some of theelectrical paths may be electrically connected to the processor.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the second externalelectronic device 400 may include a circuit that provides an electricalconnection between the first number of pins and the second number ofelectrical paths, and the first number and the second number may bedifferent from each other. When the external device (for example, thegender 600 or the first external electronic device 700) is connectedthrough the connector 461, the second external electronic device 400 mayreceive analog ID information through at least one of the first numberof pins, and generate digital ID information based at least some of thereceived analog ID information. The second external electronic device400 may be implemented to provide the generated digital ID informationto at least one of the second number of electrical paths.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a system fordescribing operations for providing an interface between devicesaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 7, a system according to various embodiments may bedivided into a legacy system 2700, a gender 600, and electronic device400.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the legacy system 2700may indicate various accessories such as OTG, data cable, wall chargeror a PC to which a low level interface standard (for example, USB 2.0interface) is applied.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the gender 600 mayserve a role for the interface compatibility between the legacy system2700 and the electronic device 400 to which the high level interfacestandard (for example, USB 3.1 Type-C interface) is applied. In variousembodiments of the present disclosure, the gender 600 may convert theinput signal (for example, a digital signal) from the legacy system andprovide the converted input signal to the electronic device 400 so as toenable the device ID (for example, USB ID recognition) of the legacysystem 2700 by the electronic device 400.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the gender 600 mayinclude a control circuit (for example, control IC) 810 and a powerswitch 830.

The control IC 810 may include an ID detector 811 and a control logic813.

The ID detector 811 may be a circuit for identifying the device of thelegacy system 2700, for example, a circuit for recognizing the of theUSB 2.0 device. In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the IDdetector 811 may include an ID DB table for various legacy systems 2700.In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the ID detector 811may be configured to be an additional combination of a resistor array,analog-to-digital converter (ADC), comparator, detector, CC1/CC2 portpull down, etc. according to the predetermined recognizable number ofIDs. In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the ID detector811 may implement a particular operation with a pull-down resistorpre-defined to serve a specific purpose. For example, a pull-down openof a standard specification may be defined to be used for a charging ordata cable, and it may operate as an OTG mode when in the case of ashort GND.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, when used for aprimary process for production or a test case, the gender 600 mayconfigure the pull-down to be 255 K, 301 K, 523 K, 619 K, etc. On theother hand, when used as the gender for the USB 2.0 OTG, the gender 600may configure the pull-down to be 0 ohm. On the other hand, whenoperating as an MHL dongle, the gender 600 may configure the pull-downto be 1 K. On the other hand, when the gender 600 is used as a wallcharger or data cable, the pull-down can be open.

The ID detector 811 may output an interrupt signal for transmitting theexternal IC notification when recognizing an ID corresponding to thepredefined device. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure,when a legacy system 2700 is connected, the ID detector 811 may detectthe legacy ID (for example, analog ID information) transmitted from thelegacy system 2700. The ID detector 811 may output a control signal (forexample, JIG_ON) in response to the detection of an ID of the legacysystem 2700. In various embodiments of the present disclosure, a simplelow/high control signal may be implemented with open-drain or push pull.

The control logic 813 may include a CC control logic associated with CCrecognition or selection (for example CC1 or CC2) for providing variouspieces of control data (for example, analog ID information, digital IDinformation, data information, or power information, and the like). Thecontrol logic 813 may generate digital ID information on the basis ofthe analog ID information detected by the ID detector 811, and transmitthe generated digital ID information to the electronic device 400.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, in the gender 600,when external devices (for example, the legacy system 2700 and theelectronic device 400) are connected through the first connector 610 andthe electronic device 400 is connected through the second connector 620,the ID detector 811 may detect a legacy ID (for example, analog IDinformation related to the legacy system 2700) through at least one ofthe first number of pins 615 of the first connector 610 and may providethe analog ID information to the control logic 813. In the gender 600,the control logic 813 may generate digital ID information based on atleast some of the received analog ID information and provide thegenerated digital ID information to the electronic device 400 through atleast one of the second number of pins 625.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in the gender 600,an ID detector 811 may recognize the legacy ID of the legacy system 2700on the basis of an operation of pull down resistor recognition circuit,and generate an interrupt signal in response thereto. In the gender 600,the control logic 813 may transmit the legacy ID and a control signal(or notification) recognized by the ID detector 811 to the firstexternal electronic device 700 through the second connector 620, inresponse to an interrupt signal of the ID detector 811. The controllogic 813 may transmit the control data (for example, PD virtual devicemetafile (VDM) or unstructured VDM, etc.) to the electronic device 400through the CC1 or CC2 port of the second number of pins 625 of thesecond connector 620.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the electronic device400 may include an interface unit 460 such as a connector (e.g., Type-Cconnector) 461, a power switch 462, a PMIC 464, a USB multiplexer (MUX)466, a switch (e.g., Super Speed SW Re-driver) 467, a control logic (forexample, control IC) 468, etc., and a controller 480 (for example, aprocessor such as AP or microprocessor control unit (MCU)). In variousembodiments of the present disclosure, the connector 461, the powerswitch 462, a PMIC 464, the USB MUX 466, the switch 467, and a controllogic 468 of the interface unit 460 may be implemented based on thecircuit corresponding to the design of the USB 3.1 Type-C interface andperform an operation corresponding thereto. Therefore, hereinafter onlyparts in an electronic device 400 related to the present disclosure inwhich a USB 3.1 Type-C interface is applied will be described, and adetailed description for the other parts will be omitted.

The electronic device 400 may receive the control data provided by thegender 600 through the connector 461, and input and process the controldata to the control logic 468 within the electronic device 400.According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the electronicdevice 400 may analyze the control data received from the control logic468 (for example, CC/PD IC ID analysis) and transfer an interrupt to thecontroller 480. When detecting the interrupt of the control logic 468,the controller 480 may set a path (for example, DP/DM data path) inresponse thereto. In addition, the controller 480 may control to set apower path of the power switch 462 on the basis of the control signal ofthe control logic 468.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the power switch 830of the gender 600 and the power switch 462 of the electronic device 400may be intended for separating the power path. For example, the powerswitch (830 or 462) may serve a role of separating the power sourceinput to the VBUS port. For example, the power path may be separatedinto a system power connection path and a charging IC input path. Thatis, the power switch (830 or 462) may serve a role of controlling thepower switch path. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure,when detecting the USB ID defined through the control logic 468, thegender 600 may transmit control data through a CC1 or CC2 port of a USBType-C interface. The gender 600 may output a CC IC Control signal(JIG_ON) according to a pre-defined ID so as to process the path controlof the power switch 830.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, a VCONN power source,for example, a power source input to the legacy system 2700 including Rathat is a powered cable indicator may add a 5V booster circuit so as tosupport various legacy systems 2700 (for example, accessories) byincreasing a current capacity compared to a standard specification.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the powerswitch 830 of the gender 600 and the power switch 462 of the electronicdevice 400 may be omitted according to a circuit design.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an interface deviceaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 8, in various embodiments of the present disclosure, amethod for providing an interface between the gender 600 which supportsdifferent interface standards (for example, USB 2.0 interface, USB 3.1Type-C interface) and electronic devices (for example, the legacy system2700, the electronic device 400) which support different interfacestandards.

In operation 801, the gender 600 may detect the connection of externalelectronic devices by a first connector 610 and second connector 620.According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the legacy system2700 which supports a USB 2.0 interface may be connected through thefirst connector 610 of the gender 600, and the electronic device 400which supports USB 3.1 Type-C interface may be connected through thesecond connector 620 of the gender 600.

In operation 803, the gender 600 may acquire analog ID informationthrough the first connector 610. According to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure, the gender 600 may receive the analog ID information(for example, legacy ID, USB ID) associated with the legacy system 2700through at least some of the first number of pins 615 of the firstconnector 610. For example, in the gender 600, the ID detector 811 maydetect that a particular device is connected through the first connector610 based on the pull-down resistor recognition operation and cause aninterrupt accordingly.

In operation 805, the gender 600 may generate digital ID informationbased on the analog ID information acquired through the first connector610. According to embodiment of the present disclosure, in the gender600, the control logic 813 may generate digital ID information (forexample, legacy ID, USB ID) for outputting the analog ID information tothe electronic device 400 based on the USB 3.1 Type-C interface, inresponse to the occurrence of the interrupt of the ID detector 811.

In operation 807, the gender 600 may output the digital ID informationthrough the second connector 620. According to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure, the gender 600 may provide the digital IDinformation to the electronic device 400 through the first path of thesecond connector 620 (for example, an electrical path (for example, CC1or CC2) including at least some of the second number of pins 625).

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an interface deviceaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 9, a method is shown, in various embodiments of thepresent disclosure, for providing an interface between the gender 600which supports different interface standards (for example, USB 2.0interface, USB 3.1 Type-C interface) and electronic devices (forexample, the legacy system 2700, the electronic device 400) whichsupport different interface standards.

In operation 901, the gender 600 may detect the connection of externalelectronic devices by the first connector 610 and the second connector620. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the legacysystem 2700 which supports a USB 2.0 interface may be connected throughthe first connector 610 of the gender 600, and the electronic device 400which supports USB 3.1 Type-C interface may be connected through thesecond connector 620 of the gender 600.

In operation 903, the gender 600 may acquire the first information andsecond information of the first external electronic device 700 (e.g.,legacy systems) through the first connector 610. According to anembodiment of the present disclosure, analog ID information (firstinformation) (for example, legacy ID, USB ID), data information, orpower information (for example, the second information) associated withthe first external electronic device 700 may be acquired through atleast some of the first number of pins 615 of the first connector 610.

In operation 905, the gender 600 may generate an interrupt signal (forexample, digital ID information) corresponding to the first information.

In operation 907, the gender 600 may provide the interrupt signal to thesecond electronic device 400 through the first path of the secondconnector 620 (for example, an electrical path (for example, CC1 or CC2pin, (sideband use 1 (SBU1) or sideband use 2 (SBU2) pin) including atleast some of the second number of pins 625).

In operation 909, the gender 600 may provide the second information tothe second external electronic device 400 through the second path of thesecond connector 620 (for example, an electrical path (for example,VBUS) including at least other pins of the second number of pins 625).

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, theoperation 907 and the operation 909 are not necessarily limited to theabove-described process, and the sequence of the operation 907 and theoperation 909 may be changed or organically occur in the same time zone(for example, parallel performance). For example, the purpose of variousembodiments of the present disclosure is to transfer information (forexample, ID) between devices through different paths (for example, afirst path, a second path), and for example, in various embodiments ofthe present disclosure, the transfer of information (for example, ID)may be performed before and after the CC control, or simultaneously (inparallel) thereof.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an electronic deviceaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 10, FIG. 10 illustrates a method for providing aninterface with one other device (for example, a legacy system) connectedto the gender 600 based on information input from the gender 600 towhich the electronic device 400 supporting a high level interfacestandard (for example, USB 3.1 Type-C interface is connected.

In operation 1001, the electronic device 400 may detect the connectionof an external device by the connector 461. According to an embodimentof the present disclosure, the electronic device 400 may be connected tothe USB 3.1 Type-C interface part of the gender 600 through theconnector 461.

In operation 1003, the electronic device 400 may receive the deviceinformation (for example, digital ID information) through the connector461. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theelectronic device 400 may receive digital ID information (for example,legacy ID, USB ID) associated with the legacy system, generated from thegender 600.

In operation 1005, the electronic device 400 may determine performanceinformation on the basis of the device information. According to anembodiment of the present disclosure, the electronic device 400 mayrecognize an ID of the connected external device based on the digital IDinformation, and determine a device corresponding to the recognized IDand performance information corresponding to a predetermined function(for example, charging, data communication, etc.). To this end, theelectronic device 400 may include an ID DB table.

In operation 1007, the electronic device 400 may process thecorresponding operation on the basis of the determined performanceinformation. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theelectronic device 400 may process a data communication operation orprocess a charging operation in conjunction with the connected externaldevice.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an electronic deviceaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 11, FIG. 11 illustrates a method, in variousembodiments of the present disclosure, for providing an interface withone other device (for example, a legacy system) connected to the gender600 based on information input from the gender 600 to which theelectronic device 400 supporting a high level interface standard (forexample, USB 3.1 Type-C interface) is connected. In particular, there isshown an operation example of a case where a conversion circuit isomitted in the gender 600 which relays an interface between the legacysystem 2700 and the electronic circuit unit 400 and the electronicdevice 400 includes the conversion circuit implemented in the gender600. In such a case, the electronic device 400 may include an ID DBtable for the device ID of the legacy system.

In operation 1101, the electronic device 400 may detect the connectionof an external device by the connector 461. According to an embodimentof the present disclosure, the electronic device 400 may be connected tothe USB 3.1 Type-C interface part of the gender 600 through theconnector 461.

In operation 1103, the electronic device 400 may receive analog IDinformation through at least one pin of the connector 461.

In operation 1105, the electronic device 400 may generate digital IDinformation based on the analog ID information received through theconnector 461. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, inthe electronic device 400, the control logic 468 generates digital IDinformation (for example, legacy ID, USB ID) based on analog IDinformation.

In operation 1107, the electronic device 400 may determine informationto be transmitted to the external device on the basis of the digital IDinformation. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theelectronic device 400 may determine and generate information related tothe data communication with the connected external device based on thedigital ID information.

In operation 1109, the electronic device 400 may transmit the determinedinformation to the external device.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of an electronic deviceaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 12, FIG. 12 illustrates a method, in variousembodiments of the present disclosure, for providing an interface withone other device (for example, a legacy system) connected to the gender600 based on information input from the gender 600 to which theelectronic device 400 supporting a high level interface standard (forexample, USB 3.1 Type-C interface) is connected. In particular, there isshown an operation example of a case where a conversion circuit isomitted in the gender 600 which relays an interface between the legacysystem 2700 and the electronic device 400, and the electronic device 400includes the conversion circuit implemented in the gender 600. In such acase, the electronic device 400 may include an ID DB table for thedevice ID of the legacy system.

In operation 1201, the electronic device 400 may detect the connectionof an external device by the connector 461. According to an embodimentof the present disclosure, the electronic device 400 may be connected tothe USB 3.1 Type-C interface part of the gender 600 through theconnector 461.

In operation 1203 and operation 1205, the electronic device 400 mayreceive first information according to the first path of the connector461 and second information according to the second path of the connector461. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, theelectronic device 400 may receive first information (for example, analogID information) through at least one pin corresponding to the first pathof the connector 461, and receive second information (for example, datainformation or power information) through at least one other pincorresponding to the second path of the connector 461.

In operation 1207, the electronic device 400 may generate digital IDinformation corresponding to the first information received through theconnector 461. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, inthe electronic device 400, the control logic 468 may generate digital IDinformation (for example, legacy ID, USB ID) based on analog IDinformation.

In operation 1209, the electronic device 400 may perform the processingof an operation based on the first information and second information.According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the electronicdevice 400 may perform the device ID of the external device according tothe digital ID information generated based on the first information, andprocess an operation according to the second information correspondingto the identified device. For example, the electronic device 400 mayprocess an operation related to the data communication corresponding tothe data information, and process an operation related to the chargingcorresponding to the power information.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 13 to 17 various systemconfigurations will be described for providing an interface betweendevices in the various embodiments of the present disclosure. Varioussystems shown and described below may be classified as a legacy system2700, a gender 600, and an electronic device 400, which may correspondto the legacy system 2700, the gender 600, and the electronic device 400described previously with reference to FIG. 7, but they may be differentin some configurations. Therefore, in the following description withreference to FIGS. 13 to 17, the detailed description of the partscorresponding to FIG. 7 will be omitted and parts related to theembodiment corresponding to each of the drawings will be described.

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a system fordescribing operations for providing an interface between devicesaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 13, the system of FIG. 13 according to variousembodiments may represent, for example, an example of a case where thereis no configuration for the power switch and the ID detector in thegender 600 unlike FIG. 7.

Referring to FIG. 13, there is presented a case of providingcompatibility between electronic devices having different interfacestandards by utilizing a user-defined pin other than the CC (forexample, CC1 or CC2) of the USB 3.1 Type-C interface.

In the embodiment of FIG. 13, the gender 600 may serve a role of pinmatching, and transmit the analog ID information (for example, legacyID, USB ID) related to the connected legacy system 2700 (for example,PC, charger, etc.) to the electronic device 400 through a SBU (e.g.,SBU1 or SBU2) pin of the USB 3.1 Type-C interface.

In an example of FIG. 13, the electronic device 400 may require acircuit which can recognize the analog ID information transmitted fromthe gender 600, and in various embodiments of the present disclosure, anID indicator pre-defined in the USB MUX 466 may be utilized.

The electronic device 400 may receive the analog ID information throughthe SBU (for example, SBU1 or SBU2) of the connector 461, and, throughthe analog ID information, the data (for example, analog ID information)transmitted from the actual SBU through the ID indicator of the USB MUX466 may be interpreted.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the gender 600 maydetect an ID in response to the connection of the legacy system 2700,and transfer the detected ID through the SBU (for example, SBU1 orSBU2). On the other hand, in various embodiments of the presentdisclosure, the gender 600 may map an analog signal to an SBU, generateonly the CC (for example CC1 or CC2) signal by a control IC 820 so as tocommunicate with the electronic device 400 (for example, the controllogic 468), and, through the analog ID information (for example, legacyID), interpret the actual SBU data in the ID indicator part of the USBMUX 466 of the electronic device 400.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, an alternate mode maybe utilized in which a protocol can be defined by the manufacturer ofthe USB 3.1 Type-C interface. For example, the gender 600 may performthe alternate mode switching, and then executes the manufacturer'sseparate protocol for the legacy system 2700. The gender 600 maytransmit the USB ID detected from the connected legacy system 2700, byexecuting the protocol, to the electronic device 400 through the SBU.According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the gender 600 mayread the USB ID of the legacy system 2700 and perform the alternate modeswitching to the CC (for example, CC1 or CC2) pin, and then may executethe manufacturer's separate protocol for the legacy system 2700.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a system fordescribing operations for providing an interface between devicesaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 14, the system of FIG. 14 according to variousembodiments may represent, for example, an example of a case where thereis no configuration for the power switch and the control IC in thegender 600 unlike FIG. 7.

Referring to FIG. 14, there may be presented a case of providingcompatibility between electronic devices having different interfacestandards by utilizing a debug mode. According to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure, FIG. 14 represents, when utilizing the debug mode, acircuit configuration of applying (for example, CC1=CC2) a pull-down(for example, Rd) to the USB 3.1 Type-C interface of the CC (forexample, CC1 851 and CC2 853).

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, when recognizing thepull-down through CC1 851 and CC2 853, the gender 600 may enter into thedebug mode in response to the connection of the legacy system 2700 andthe electronic device 400. After entering into the debug mode, thegender 600 may be implemented in a form which can identify which kind ofmode the analog ID information (for example, legacy ID, USB ID) acquiredfrom the legacy system 2700 is to be operated in, and transmit theresult to the SBU (for example, SBU1 or SBU2).

Referring to FIG. 14, the CC1 851 and CC2 of the USB 3.1 Type-Cinterface are configured to have the same level of resistance (forexample, Rd (for example, 5.1K)), and the electronic device 400 mayrecognize the debug mode when the Type-C connector 461 detects thepull-down through the CC1 851 and CC2 853. When recognizing the debugmode, the electronic device 400 may be switched to the legacyrecognition mode for recognizing the legacy system 2700 and check the IDthrough the SBU1 or SBU2 or the Type-C connector 461. For example, asthe <conditions> below, when the legacy ID is detected from the SBU1,the SBU2 detects ‘open’, and the SBU1 uses the row, the electronicdevice 400 may take advantage of the SBU by substituting the CC.

<Conditions>

IF SBU 1=Legacy ID and SBU 2=OPEN, THEN SBU 1 row is available

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, corresponding to FIG.14, the CC1 851 and CC2 853 are configured to have different levels ofresistance (for example, CC1=Rd, CC2=Rv), and when the Type-C connector461 detects the different levels of resistors through the CC1 851 andCC2 853, the electronic device 400 may recognize the ID of the legacysystem 2700 through the SBU. For example, when the CC1 851 or CC2 853 ofthe host (DFP) (for example, the gender 600) recognizes the pull-down,it is possible to check whether the CC1 851 and CC2 853 have the samelevel of resistance. According to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the current or a voltage in CC1 851 and CC2 853 may bechecked. When the CC1 851 and the CC2 853 are different with each other,it can be recognized as a dedicated mode, and the SBU can be substitutedfor the CC in the dedicated mode.

FIGS. 15 and 16 are diagrams illustrating a configuration of a systemfor describing operations for providing an interface between devicesaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIGS. 15 and 16, a system according to various embodimentsmay indicate an example of a case where, for example, unlike FIG. 7, theelectronic device 400 belongs to a legacy system supporting the USB 2.0interface and not the USB 3.1 Type-C interface, and the accessorysupports the USB 3.1 Type-C interface. For example, FIGS. 15 and 16 mayrepresent a recognition scenario such as, the legacy electronic device400 and a Type C-accessory 1500 (for example, PC, charger, etc.).

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, FIG. 15 may illustratean example in which the gender 600 includes a power switch 830 forseparating the power path, and FIG. 16 may illustrate an example inwhich the gender 600 does not include the power switch 830 forseparating the power path.

Referring to FIG. 16, an additional power line for VCONN may beselectively implemented.

Referring to FIGS. 15 and 16, in the gender 600, the control IC 870 mayinclude the control logic 813 and the ID generator 871. When the Type-Caccessory 1500 and the legacy electronic device 400 are connected, thegender 600 may recognize a type of accessory as the Type-C Accessory1500 on the basis of the digital ID information (for example, interrupt)transmitted through the CC (for example, CC1 or CC2) from the controllogic 873. In response to the recognized type of accessory by the gender600, the ID generator 871 may generate analog ID information (forexample, resistance value, USB ID) which can be recognized by the legacyelectronic device 400. The gender 600 may transmit the generated analogID information through a legacy connector 469 of the legacy electronicdevice 400.

The legacy electronic device 400 may provide, to an ID indicatorpre-defined in the USB MUX 466, the analog ID information (for example,USB ID) transmitted through at least one (for example, D+ or D−) of theelectrical paths of the legacy connector 469. The legacy electronicdevice 400 may receive the analog ID information through the electricalpath of the legacy connector 469, and, through the analog IDinformation, interpret data (a resistance value corresponding to analogID information) transmitted through the ID indicator of the USB MUX 466.

FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating a system configuration for describingoperations for providing an interface between devices according tovarious embodiments of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 17, the system according to various embodiments mayrepresent a scenario for recognizing a case where, for example, unlikeFIGS. 15 and 16, the electronic device 400 supports the USB 3.1 Type-Cinterface and the accessory supports only the high speed host onlyType-C accessory 1700 (for example, charger, etc.). FIG. 17 mayrepresent a case where devices are connected with each other, without agender 600, through a cable 900 (for example, USB 2.0 Micro-B to USB 3.1Type-C). The host only Type-C accessory 1700 may include a controller IC1710, a pull-up resistor (for example, Rp) 1730, and a Micro-B socket(or connector) 1750.

Referring to FIG. 17, when the host only Type-C accessory 1700 (forexample, charger) includes the controller IC 1710, the pull-up resistor(Rp) 1730 may be applied to the USB ID pin of the Micro-B socket 1750.The USB ID to which the pull-up is applied may be directly coupled tothe CC of the cable 900, and directly transmitted to the C-typeconnector 461 of the electronic device 400 through the CC of the cable900. In such a case of FIG. 17, the wiring of the cable 900 can beminimized to have only VBUS, D+, D−, CC, and GND.

The electronic device 400 connected through the host only Type-Caccessory 1700 and the cable 900 may detect the connection of anexternal device (for example, host-only type C accessories 1700), andrecognize that the external device which is connected through the USB IDtransmitted to the CC is the host only Type-C accessory 1700.

FIGS. 18 to 20 are diagrams illustrating a system configuration fordescribing operations for providing an interface between devicesaccording to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 18 to 20 may represent an example of a case where a Type-C audioaccessory is connected to the electronic device 400 through a USB 3.1Type-C interface. In the example of the FIGS. 18 to 20, an IDcorresponding to the Type-C audio accessary may be provided through a CC(for example, CC1 or CC2), and an SBU (for example, SBU1 or SBU2) audiosignal (for example, an input signal such as MIC) may be extended andprovided.

For example, when an audio accessory mode defined by DP (D+), DM (D−),SBU1, and SBU2 is implemented as it is, an audio performance degradationmay become high due to a problem of sharing the DP/DM of the USB 2.0interface, and the scalability thereof may be limited due to therestriction in the pin-out. Thus, in the case of the Type-C audioaccessory, the above-mentioned problems can be solved by utilizing anSBU.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, FIG. 18 may representan example of the case where an audio accessory operates as a basicfunction (for example, 1-MIC). Referring to FIG. 18, the SBU 1 and SBU 2which are MIC pins may be directly assigned to AUDIO CODEC line inputsof the electronic device 400. In such a case, a differential circuit maybe configured, two ports assignment can be made, and a separateswitching circuit implementation may be omitted in the audio codec.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, for the keyinput impedance detection, MIC ports may be configured to beindividually connected to the differential ports so as to implement thecircuit simplification. In addition, a circuit for preventing theperformance degradation of a stereo audio signal due to the switching ofthe DP/DM port may be implemented. For example, an audio switching pathfor only a stereo audio path may be added, and a switch IC is arrangedin the vicinity of the Type-C connector so that signal integrityperformance degradation due to the USB 2.0 can be prevented.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, FIG. 19 may representan example of a case where an audio accessory operates as amulti-function (for example, 2-MIC). Referring to FIG. 19, the MIC maybe assigned to each of the Type-C SBU1 and SBU2. For example, it may beconfigured as shown in Table 2 below.

TABLE 2 Port Conventional pin-out Proposed pin-out CC Connection ControlConnection Control D+ Audio Right Audio Right D− Audio Left Audio LeftSBU1, SBU2 MIC or GND MIC & MIC GND Don't care GND

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, an MIC signal receivedfrom an audio accessary (for example, a headset) may be input to anaudio CODEC of the electronic device 400 so that a MIC-related solutionsuch as active noise cancelling (ANC) may be driven for the DSP insidethe CODEC. In various embodiments of the present disclosure, a headsetmulti-key input processing may be configured in an active or passivetype.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in the passivetype, it may be configured to recognize the impedance detection of theSBU1 and SBU2 through an audio codec or an external detection circuit,and for the active type, when the VDM generator is included in thecircuit unit of the audio accessory (for example, a headset), a digitalID may be generated through the CC.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, a method forrecognizing the first microphone (1st MIC) and second microphone (2ndMIC) may configure the first microphone and second microphone accordingto the CC1 or CC2 connection. According to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, for the CC1 connection, it may be implemented such thatSBU1=first microphone and SBU2 second microphone, and for the CC2connection, it may be implemented such that SBU1=second microphone andSBU2=first microphone. Additionally or alternatively, it may beimplemented by adding a switch for controlling a path between SBU1 andSBU2.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, FIG. 20 may representa case where an audio accessory operates as a multi-function (forexample, 3-MIC), for example, a Type-C headset including referencemicrophones (Reference MICs) and a voice microphone (voice MIC) in orderto secure audio data. In various embodiments of the present disclosure,the basic pin connection may be configured as illustrated in Table 3below.

TABLE 3 Port Pin-out CC Connection Control SBU1, SBU2 Ref MIC1 & RefMIC2 D+ or D− Voice MIC GND GND

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, according to the audiodata processing, data of the reference microphones (e.g., Ref MIC1, RefMIC2) may be transmitted to the electronic device 400 through the SBU1and SBU2, and the electronic device 400 may perform signal processing onthe data input through the SBU1 and SBU2 based on the DSP of the audiocodec.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, the pin connectionaccording to stereo music play or a voice call may be configured asillustrated in Table 4 below.

TABLE 4 Port Stereo music play Voice call CC Connection ControlConnection Control D+ Stereo Right Mono headphone out or voice MIC D−Stereo Left voice MIC or Mono headphone out SBU1, SBU2 Ref MIC1 & RefMIC2 Ref MIC1 & Ref MIC2 GND GND GND

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, a reference MICcalibration process for an ANC may be provided. For example, thecalibration may be processed at each time when an internal memory of theaudio accessory is added or the electronic device 400 is inserted intothe internal audio codec DSP inside the electronic devices 400.

In order to solve the above problem, a method and apparatus forproviding an interface according to various embodiments may secure thecompatibility between different types (standards) of interfaces. Forexample, various embodiments may ensure the compatibility between anelectronic device which has a high level interface standard (forexample, a USB 3.1 Type C interface) and a legacy system (for example, aUSB 2.0 accessory such as a generally-used OTG, data cable, wallcharger, etc.) which has a low level interface standard (for example, aUSB 2.0 standard pin-out interface such as Micro A, B, AB, etc.).

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the problemin that the legacy system has limitations in application can be solved,when applying a USB Type-C to an electronic device, by ensuring thecompatibility of the electronic device and the USB interface-basedlegacy system which is commonly used in various ways according to therelated art. In addition, according to various embodiments of thepresent disclosure, malfunction issues may be prevented between anelectronic device and a legacy system, and the electronic device and thelegacy system can be compatible with each other without changing thelegacy system and the manufacturing process equipment according to therelated art.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, an interfacemethod and apparatus for ensuring compatibility between high levelinterface standards and low level interface standards is provided,thereby improving a user's convenience and the usability and convenienceof the electronic device.

While the present disclosure has been shown and described with referenceto various embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilledin the art that various changes in form and details may be made thereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure asdefined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. An electronic device comprising: a housing; afirst connector configured to be exposed to outside of the housing andinclude a first number of pins; a second connector configured to beexposed to the outside of the housing and to include a second number ofpins; and a circuit configured to provide an electrical connectionbetween the first number of pins and the second number of pins, whereinthe first number is different from the second number, and wherein, whenthe first connector is connected with a first external electronic deviceand the second connector is connected with a second external electronicdevice, the circuit is further configured to: receive analogidentification (ID) information through at least one pin among the firstnumber of pins, and generate digital ID information at least partiallybased on the analog ID information so as to provide the digital IDinformation to at least one of the second number of pins.
 2. Theelectronic device of claim 1, wherein the first connector comprises anasymmetrical shape in at least one direction, and wherein the secondconnector comprises a symmetrical shape in at least two directions. 3.The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the first number is less thanthe second number.
 4. The electronic device of claim 3, wherein thefirst number of pins is five, and the second number of pins is
 24. 5.The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the electronic devicecomprises a gender or cable configured to support different interfacestandards.
 6. The electronic device of claim 5, wherein the differentinterface standards comprise a universal serial bus (USB) 2.0 interfaceand a USB Type-C interface.
 7. The electronic device of claim 1, whereinthe circuit is further configured to: acquire, from the first externaldevice, at least one among analog ID information, data information, orpower information associated with the external device with respect tothe electronic device; convert the analog ID information into digital IDinformation; and provide the data information or the power informationthrough a first path and provide the digital ID information through asecond path.
 8. The electronic device of claim 7, wherein the circuit isfurther configured to convert the analog ID information into the digitalID information without determining the type of the first externaldevice.
 9. An electronic device comprising: a connector configured toconnect the electronic device with an external device; an electricalpath configured to be electrically connected to the connector; aprocessor configured to be electrically connected to the connector andthe electrical path; and a memory configured to be electricallyconnected to the processor, wherein the memory stores instructions to beexecuted by the processor, the instructions comprising: transmittinganalog identification (ID) information received through at least one pinof the connector through the electrical path; generating digital IDinformation on the basis of the transmitted analog ID information; anddetermining information to be transmitted to the external device on thebasis of the generated digital ID information.
 10. The electronic deviceof claim 9, wherein the electronic device further comprises: a housing;a first connector configured to be exposed to the outside of the housingand to include a first number of pins; a second number of electricalpaths configured to be included inside the housing; the processor beingfurther configured to be electrically connected to at least some of theelectrical paths; and a circuit configured to provide an electricalconnection between the first number of pins and the second number ofelectrical paths, wherein the first number is different from the secondnumber, and wherein, when the first connector is connected with a firstexternal electronic device, the circuit is further configured to:receive analog ID information through at least one pin among the firstnumber of pins, and generate digital ID information at least partiallybased on the analog ID information so as to provide the digital IDinformation to at least one of the second number of electrical paths.11. A method for operating an electronic device comprising a firstconnector and a second connector, the method comprising: detecting aconnection of external electronic devices through the first connectorand the second connector; receiving analog identification (ID)information through at least one of the first number of pins of thefirst connector; generating digital ID information at least partiallybased on the analog ID information; and providing the generated digitalID information to at least one of the second number of pins of thesecond connector, wherein the first number is different from the secondnumber.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the analog ID information ordigital ID information comprises a universal serial bus (USB) ID of theexternal electronic device connected to the first connector or thesecond connector.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein receiving of theanalog ID information comprises acquiring, from the external electronicdevice, at least one of analog ID information, data information, andpower information associated with the external electronic device. 14.The method of claim 13, further comprising: converting the analog IDinformation into digital ID information; providing the data informationor the power information through a first path; and providing theconverted digital ID information through a second path.
 15. A method foroperating an electronic device having a connector, the methodcomprising: connecting to an external device through the connector;receiving analog identification (ID) information associated with theexternal device through at least one pin of the connector; transmittingthe received analog ID information through an electrical pathelectrically connected to the connector; generating digital IDinformation based on the transmitted analog ID information; anddetermining information to be transmitted to the external device basedon the generated digital ID information.
 16. The method of claim 15,further comprising: identifying the external device based on thegenerated digital ID information; determining performance informationcorresponding to the identified external device; and communicating withthe external device based on the determined performance information. 17.The method of claim 15, wherein receiving of the analog ID informationcomprises: receiving first information through at least one pincorresponding to a first path of the connector; and receiving secondinformation through at least one other pin corresponding to a secondpath of the connector.
 18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:generating digital information corresponding to the received firstinformation; identifying the external electronic device according to thedigital D information, and processing an operation corresponding to theexternal electronic device in response to the second information.